Saturday, 22 November 2014

THE PINK SOFA meets Carol Anne Hunter

The Very Late Carol Anne Hunter – Writer?

Every now and then,The Pink Sofa falls in love with one of its guests. Carol Anne is its latest crush. I met Carol Anne when Crooked Cat asked me to advise her as she entered the tricky land of Social Media. Carol Anne is a whirlwind of fun mixed with compassion and a HUGE writing talent. The smitten Pink Sofa is reading 'Project Me' at the moment, and wishes you all to know that it is THE Go-to book this Christmas (stuff my new book - but that's furniture for you). In honour of Carol Anne's visit, there are bowls of mincemeant ice cream and chocolate cupcakes on the coffee table. Go Carol Anne ....

The Very Late Carol Anne Hunter – Writer?

If
you ask me what I do, I’ll say I’m retired, or a carer, or I work part-time
behind a bar. I never say I’m a writer, although it’s all I want to do, it just
feels too grandiose to be me. Or maybe it has something to do with the time it
took me to write my first book and see it published – six years all in,
although I wasn’t writing full-time and there were long spells where I didn’t
touch the manuscript at all. But I always came back to it and I knew I couldn’t
let it fester in a drawer. It also has to do with my disbelief at being
published at age sixty.

The term ‘late starter’ should be my mantra. So should
‘endurance’. I don’t mind telling you that Crooked Cat offered me a contract from
the book’s fourteenth submission. I comfort myself with the thought that much
better writers than me also braved this test of self-belief. Dedication is the
name of the writing game; persistence is its publishing partner.

Carol's latest novel

Twenty-seven years of working with Jobcentre
Plus (DHSS as was) gave me lots of writing fodder, which was often less to do
with the behaviour of our public and more to do with the characters amongst our
staff. The men at the golf club are a great source of banter, too, especially
when they’ve quaffed a glass or two.

I also hail from a huge extended family –
my mum was one of eleven and I’m one of around forty grandchildren (give or
take). The eight year old me would be sent behind the couch to play while mum
and her sisters gossiped about family matters and boy, did I have big ears. I’d
pick up on snippets such as, ‘Remember when whatshername had the B-A-B-Y?’ While they rattled the
skeletons in the family closet, I learned the clan’s secrets.

In my defence, their
chats were educational. Well, as far as spelling went, that is. And I have a
handy quirk – I can remember almost every one-liner, put-down or clever remark
ever uttered in my presence, all of which have been captured and stored in my
computer, and are jostling for their moment on a page. One came in email form. I messaged a friend late one night before
climbing into bed and signed off with ‘Nite nite, I’m off to bobos.’ She came
back with, ‘ooh, is that yon new night club in town?’ Priceless. Like I’d ever
be caught dead in a night club.

After early retirement I didn’t want to go
back to targets, deadlines and budgets, but I craved a challenge. Then I
thought back to my early thirties when I’d taken an English ‘O’ level night
class. The tutor, who was more accustomed to being ignored by twelve year olds
than teaching enthusiastic adults, refused to mark my first submitted essay and
accused me of copying it from a book. I was so busy flouncing out of her class
that I didn’t catch on to the compliment at first. My indignance took me back
to a different class the following year and I achieved an ‘A’ in the English
Higher. With distinction. And bells and whistles. And a happy dance. Every
cloud…

I wanted to take my studies further but by
then I had met the man I later married. He was starting up a new business and I
became his part-time company secretary and step-mum to his three kids while
still working for DHSS full-time. Writing was relegated to the bottom of the
work pile, hence the reason I didn’t take it seriously until I was fifty-five, post-marital
and retired.

I’m currently working on Book #2, the sequel
to Project Me. I’ve had to take my foot off the writing pedal due to my mum’s
deteriorating health but I won’t pull on the brake the way I did in my thirties.
Instead I’ll slow it down, write when I can and hope I reach the finishing line
while it’s still relevant.

I’ve always written in some form or another.
Funny poems are my forte and once I get into the zone it all seems to flow as
if it’s being fed down via some cosmic link. I love word play, gritty dialogue
and attitude and I hope that comes over in my writing.

What’s the new dream? Now that the book is
published, I suppose it’s to have someone make the movie. I’d love to see my
characters brought to life. It’s unlikely to happen, given the odds and the
number of fabulous stories out there vying for attention, but it would be
amazing all the same, and the only way I’d ever get to meet the gorgeous
Douglas Henshall since I wrote the part of Maggie’s ex-boyfriend, John,
especially for him.

8 comments:

What a lovely interview, Carol Anne (to distinguish from Carol J). I thoroughly enjoyed reading about your writing journey. Good luck with your books, and I look forward to seeing Douglas Henshall in the movie!Another successful tea party on the sofa, Carol J!

Lovely to meet you too, Wendy! And you're right, perseverance does pay off in the end. I see you're a writer so you'll know how hard it is for a first-time novelist. I didn't get anywhere until I'd had a short story published and another came runner up in a major crimewriting competition. Thanks for your comments, and I hope you're using these cold, dark nights to write up a storm! Carol xx

I love that you have a stock of every one-liner you've ever heard. Wish I'd thought to do that but *shrugs* it's too late now I guess. The passions in your dreams comes through each word. Good luck with your next venture.

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Buy any of my books by clicking on the individual covers below, or visit my Amazon Author Page(click image)

Fear&Phantoms

'This exciting tale can be read as a stand-alone or as an introduction to the wonderful series.'

Diamonds&Dust

Crime Writers Association 2014 Award Entry. 'Diamonds and Dust showcases brilliant writing, unforgettable characters, gripping suspense, and a serpentine plot that winds to vertiginous heights in London’s nighttime miasma of danger and evil. Not even Queen Victoria makes a safe escape from the history and heartbreak when opulence collides with greed in 1860 London.'

Honour&Obey

'A Delicious Feast of Victorian Delights: a novel full of tricksters, murders, lies and intrigue. I challenge you to be able to put it down once you start reading. Carol Hedges has again delivered a book which is written to be devoured in one sitting.'

Death&Dominion

'A work of Art :I read some passages several times to enjoy them all over again, there's not one single boring bit. It's so well researched, too; I wonder if Ms Hedges actually time-travelled to discover those dark, dangerous alleyways herself! Best way to read it? Sitting up in bed with lots of pillows, in a warm room with coffee, tea and possibly cakes.'

Rack&Ruin

'What a pleasure! An interesting crime story. No gore, just the underlying violence of London in 1863. Interesting and believable characters.'.

Wonders & Wickedness

'Carol Hedges, in her wonderful Victorian Detective series, channels the most Dickensian of tropes without the overly sentimental, I-get-paid-by-the-word-so-I-never-use-one-where-six-would-do Dickensian mush.'